Q Poll: Governor's Race Now a Dead Heat

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Republican nominee Tom Foley stare each other down as they went head to head in a debate at the Albert N. Jorgensen Auditorium Tuesday night on the UConn campus in Storrs.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Republican nominee Tom Foley stare each other down as they went head to head in a debate at the Albert N. Jorgensen Auditorium Tuesday night on the UConn campus in Storrs. (John Woike / Hartford Courant)

A new Quinnipiac University poll of likely voters shows the Connecticut governor's race in a dead heat.

Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has caught up with Republican Tom Foley; the two men each garner 43 percent of the vote, according to the poll relesed Wednesday. Petitioning candidate Joe Visconti received 9 percent.

“The poll is good news for Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy,'' poll Director Doug Schwartz said in a press release accompanying the new numbers. "After trailing Republican Tom Foley by 6 points a month ago, Malloy is tied as this race promises to go down to the wire.''

Malloy lagged behind Foley by 6 percentage points in last month's Q poll. But after last week's two televised debates, the governor made significant inroads. A flurry of negative ads also succeeded in dragging down Foley's approval rating, Schwartz said.

The poll comes on the heals of another survey released this week showing Malloy ahead by 8 points.

The poll found that many voters don't like either candidate. Fifty-one percent of voters view Malloy negatively and 39 percent have a negative view of Foley.

“As the campaign has gotten nasty, voters are not wild about either candidate,'' Schwartz said. "Malloy’s favorability rating is still underwater. Foley gets a mixed favorability rating. He is a little better known since early September, but a little less liked. Voters like Foley less since our last poll. Foley’s negatives have risen perhaps due to Malloy’s attacks.”

There's still room for movement: about a quarter of the votrers said they might change their mind.

The survey of 1,085 voters was conducted from From October 1 to 6. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.